Ovenbird (family)

Ovenbird (family)
Ovenbirds or furnariids are a large family of small suboscine passerine birds found from Mexico and Central to southern South America. They form the family Furnariidae. This is a large family containing around 315 species and 70 genera. The ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapilla), which breeds in North America, is not a furnariid – rather it is a distantly related bird of the wood warbler family, Parulidae.
The ovenbirds are a diverse group of insectivores which get their name from the elaborate, vaguely "oven-like" clay nests built by the horneros, although most other ovenbirds build stick nests or nest in tunnels or clefts in rock. The Spanish word for "oven" (horno) gives the horneros their name. Furnariid nests are always constructed with a cover, and up to six pale blue, greenish or white eggs are laid. The eggs hatch after 15 to 22 days, and the young fledge after a further 13 to 20 days.
They are small to medium-sized birds, ranging from 9 to 35 cm in length. While individual species often are habitat specialists, species of this family can be found in virtually any Neotropical habitat, ranging from city parks inhabited by rufous horneros, to tropical Amazonian lowlands by many species of foliage-gleaners, to temperate barren Andean highlands inhabited by several species of miners. Two species, the seaside and the surf cinclodes, are associated with rocky coasts.
Taxonomy and systematics
The woodcreepers (formerly Dendrocolaptidae) were merged into this family, following analysis of sequences. While confirming the overall phylogenetic pattern, other scientists instead opted for maintaining the woodcreepers as a separate family, while splitting the ovenbirds (as traditionally defined) into two families, Furnariidae and Scleruridae.
The cladogram below showing the subfamilies of the ovenbirds is based on a molecular genetic studies that revealed that Sclerurinae was the first group to diverge The species numbers are from the list maintained by the International Ornithologists' Union (IOC).
The phylogeny of the Furnariidae is now well understood thanks to multiple analyses of nuclear and mitochondrial DNA. Among other discoveries, the classification of several genera had to be revised. The taxonomic arrangement presented below is based on molecular genetic studies of ovenbird relationships. However, because ovenbirds and woodcreepers are treated here as a single family some taxonomic ranks were modified. For more detail see "List of ovenbird species".
Subfamily: Sclerurinae – miners and leaftossers
Genus Geositta – miners (11 species)
Genus Sclerurus – leaftossers (7 species)
Subfamily: Dendrocolaptinae – woodcreepers
Tribe: Sittasomini – "intermediate" woodcreepers
Genus Dendrocincla – woodcreepers (6 species)
Genus Deconychura – long-tailed woodcreepers (3 species)
Genus Sittasomus – olivaceous woodcreeper
Genus Certhiasomus – spot-throated woodcreeper (genus introduced in 2010 for Deconychura stictolaema)
Tribe: Dendrocolaptini – "strong-billed" woodcreepers
Genus Glyphorynchus – wedge-billed woodcreeper
Genus Nasica – long-billed woodcreeper
Genus Dendrexetastes – cinnamon-throated woodcreeper
Genus Dendrocolaptes – woodcreepers (5 species)
Genus Hylexetastes – woodcreepers (3 species)
Genus Xiphocolaptes – woodcreepers (4 species)
Genus Dendroplex – straight-billed woodcreepers (2 species, formerly in Xiphorhynchus)
Genus Xiphorhynchus – woodcreepers (13 species)
Genus Lepidocolaptes – narrow-billed woodcreepers (11 species)
Genus Drymornis – scimitar-billed woodcreeper
Genus Drymotoxeres – greater scythebill
Genus Campylorhamphus – scythebills (6 species)
Subfamily: Furnariinae – Neotropical ovenbirds and allies
Genus: Xenops – xenops (4 species)
Genus Berlepschia – point-tailed palmcreeper
Tribe Pygarrhichini
Genus Pygarrhichas – white-throated treerunner
Genus Microxenops – rufous-tailed xenops
Genus Ochetorhynchus – earthcreepers (4 species formerly included in Upucerthia)
Tribe Furnariini – horneros and allies
Genus Pseudocolaptes – tuftedcheeks (3 species)
Genus Premnornis – rusty-winged barbtail
Genus Tarphonomus – (genus introduced in 2007 for 2 species formerly included in Upucerthia)
Genus Geocerthia – striated earthcreeper (genus introduced in 2009 for U. serrrana)
Genus Upucerthia – earthcreepers (4 species)
Genus Cinclodes – cinclodes (15 species)
Genus Furnarius – horneros (8 species)
Genus Lochmias – sharp-tailed streamcreeper
Genus Phleocryptes – wren-like rushbird
Genus Limnornis – curve-billed reedhaunter
Tribe Philydorini – foliage-gleaners and allies
Genus Megaxenops – great xenops
Genus Anabazenops – foliage-gleaners (2 species)
Genus Ancistrops – chestnut-winged hookbill
Genus Cichlocolaptes – (2 species)
Genus Heliobletus – sharp-billed treehunter
Genus Philydor – foliage-gleaners (5 species)
Genus Dendroma – foliage-gleaners (2 species)
Genus Anabacerthia – foliage-gleaners (5 species)
Genus Syndactyla – foliage-gleaners (8 species)
Genus Clibanornis – (5 species)
Genus Thripadectes – treehunters (7 species)
Genus Automolus – foliage-gleaners (11 species)
Tribe Synallaxini – spinetails and allies
Genus Margarornis – treerunners (4 species)
Genus Premnoplex – typical barbtails (2 species)
Genus Aphrastura – rayaditos (3 species)
Genus Hellmayrea – white-browed spinetail
Genus Sylviorthorhynchus – (2 species)
Genus Leptasthenura – tit-spinetails (9 species)
Genus Phacellodomus – thornbirds (10 species)
Genus Anumbius – firewood-gatherer
Genus Coryphistera – lark-like brushrunner
Genus Pseudoseisura – cacholotes (4 species)
Genus Pseudasthenes – false canasteros
Genus Spartonoica – bay-capped wren-spinetail
Genus Asthenes – canasteros (29 species)
Genus Certhiaxis – spinetails (2 species)
Genus Mazaria – white-bellied spinetail
Genus Schoeniophylax – chotoy spinetail
Genus Synallaxis – spinetails (37 species)
Genus Siptornis – spectacled prickletail
Genus Metopothrix – orange-fronted plushcrown
Genus Xenerpestes – graytails (2 species)
Genus Acrobatornis – pink-legged graveteiro
Genus Limnoctites – reedhaunters (2 species)
Genus Thripophaga – softtails (4 species)
Genus Cranioleuca – typical spinetails (20 species)
Genus Roraimia – Roraiman barbtail
The phylogenetic tree shown below is based on a large-scale genetic 2020 study of the suboscines by Michael Harvey and collaborators. The tawny tit-spinetail (Leptasthenura yanacencis) has been moved to the genus Sylviorthorhynchus, the sulphur-bearded spinetail (Cranioleuca sulphurifera) has been moved to the genus Limnoctites and its English name changed to the sulphur-bearded reedhaunter, and the white-bellied spinetail (Synallaxis propinqua) has been placed in the monotypic genus Mazaria. These changes are included in the tree shown below. The remaining paraphyletic genera are flagged in the tree by an asterisk.
In 2009 the large ovenbird family was divided into tribes by Robert Moyle and collaborators. The tribes as defined in the 2009 article do not fit well with the revised taxonomy of Harvey and are not included here. For example, the tribe Furnariini as defined in the 2009 article is not monophyletic in the Harvey phylogeny. The species numbers in the cladogram are from the list maintained by the International Ornithologists' Union (IOC).
References
Further reading
External links
Ovenbird videos on the Internet Bird Collection
Ovenbird sounds in the xeno-canto collection
A classification of the bird species of South America (Part 6) (SACC)
Higher-level bird taxa restricted to the Neotropics